This adds to the vulnerability of hotels as institutions. Hotels collect tons of sensitive information: financial records, credit card details, and personally identifiable information of both employees and guests.

Al Lijee, a home security specialist at Rated Locksmiths, has explained to Digital Journal tips on how to identify and neutralise hidden cameras in hotel rooms, shedding a light on the threats that may go unnoticed by the average guest.

Apps

One option that is helping guests to stay safe is the usage of apps designed specifically to detect hidden cameras.

“These sophisticated tools utilize smartphone cameras to scan for any reflections, alerting users to potential hidden cameras. These apps are capable of identifying glass and other reflective surfaces that may conceal cameras, serving as an added layer of defence for hotel guests,” says Lijee.

Cover Ups

Another recommended and hands-on approach people can take to uncovering hidden cameras is to cover up anything that appears suspicious.

This includes objects that may seem out of place or have unusual features.

Lijee observes that “By taking this proactive step, you can minimise the risk of unknowingly falling victim to invasive surveillance.”

Wi-Fi

Unplugging the Wi-Fi router emerged as another effective tactic to thwart hidden cameras.

“Many hidden cameras (if not most) rely on Wi-Fi connectivity to transmit data and disconnecting the router can disrupt their operation. This simple yet powerful action allows guests to regain control over their privacy and safeguard against potential breaches of their own sensitive information,” adds Lijee.

Gadgets

Any “fishy” gadgets present in the hotel room should also be approached with caution.

“Guests should trust their instincts and scrutinise devices that seem suspicious or at the very least, oddly placed. Unplugging anything that appears out of the ordinary, such as an alarm clock or an unfamiliar USB plug in the wall, is recommended as a preemptive measure,” explains Lijee.

Observation

While technology plays a crucial role in safeguarding privacy, the importance of being vigilant and observant is still ever present.

Guests are advised by Lijee to conduct a visual sweep of their hotel room upon arrival, paying attention to any unusual objects or devices that may raise suspicion.

He concludes: “This hands-on approach, combined with the use of specialised apps, provides a comprehensive strategy for identifying hidden cameras and ensuring a secure stay.”

The post Who is watching whom? How to find hidden cameras in hotel rooms appeared first on Digital Journal.

To chart these changed, Surfshark’s Research Hub released an analysis, delving into the complex details of these changes.

“Exploring GDPR compliance and tech ethics, our 2023 digital freedom research underscores the need for a sophisticated approach to dominant technologies. Challenges posed by Meta’s Threads and the “Pay or Okay” initiative necessitate a re-evaluation of existing digital strategies. Our commitment endures in cultivating an ethical digital landscape that prioritizes user privacy and responsible tech use — an innovation that respects everyone’s non-negotiable right to privacy,” says Agneska Sablovskaja, Lead Researcher at Surfshark explains to Digital Journal.

Potential violations of users’ data privacy

How safe and secure are Large Language Models? In 2023, ChatGPT surged in popularity. At the same time, Sablovskaja finds, there were concerns over the AI giant’s questionable data collection practices and safety. This worry resulted in Italy’s temporary ban on ChatGPT and the creation of ChatGPT task forces by the European Data Protection Board (EDPB) and the US Department of Homeland Security (DHS). OpenAI, the creator of ChatGPT, potentially used personal data without consent and lacked age verification tools for children.

Meta has also faced scrutiny for potential GDPR violations. Sablovskaja finds that Meta’s decision to apply the so-called “Pay or Okay” approach in the EU raised further debates on legality, raising concerns about user data control and protection. Addressing these issues is imperative to safeguard user trust, ensure compliance with data protection regulations, and foster responsible and ethical use of advanced technologies.

Digital governance landscape

Sablovskaja unearths that democracies took the lead in data safety efforts. Autocratic countries, lacking robust data protection laws, fell behind in comparison. Hungary stood out as a notable exception, benefiting from its EU membership and adherence to GDPR compliance. This exception underscored the critical role of legislative frameworks.

The digital landscape faced another stark reality as 4.2 billion individuals grappled with Internet shutdowns in the first half of 2023. This number encapsulated the daily struggles of people in nations like China and the UAE, where internet restrictions have become an unfortunate norm. Globally, 42 new restrictions highlighted the pervasive impact on digital access.

Additionally, Sablovskaja  has delved into the escalating trend of government content removal requests to Google. The findings revealed an astounding global surge, with 91,000 requests in 2022 alone — nearly 13 times the number in 2013. Russia claimed the top spot with 215,000 requests during this period, outstripping other nations significantly. In contrast, South Korea submitted a mere fraction of Russia’s requests.

The post Digital freedom: Why 2023 was a year of challenges appeared first on Digital Journal.

This dichotomy is celebrated through different artistic media at a new exhibition, one that brings the ideas of over thirty of the world’s leading contemporary artists together. The theme is based around artistic attempts to pull back the curtain on modern-day deceptions. This includes different hoaxes, and the blatant lies posted on social media, which are often fabricated with new technology.

The exhibition seeks to take the visitor through a looking glass of illusion and beliefs. The idea is that when exposed, deepfakes often reveal a greater truth. In seeking to achieve this, different parts of the exhibition are anchored by an entire gallery of phantasmagorical installations by the artist Tony Oursler.

The new museum show is headlining as part of this year’s Art Basel Season in South Florida. Among the 30 nationally acclaimed artists are: Tony Oursler, Urs Fischer, Alfredo Jaar, Sarah Charlesworth, Christian Jankowski, Faisal Abdu’Allah, Mark Thomas Gibson, Kristin Lucas and Jane Hammond.

The title of this new group show is: Smoke and Mirrors: Magical Thinking in Contemporary Art, taking place in Palm Beach County at the Boca Raton Museum of Art (the exhibition continues until May 12, 2024).

Among the artworks and special commissions is a new interactive installation by Jacob Hicks utilizing ChatGPT Artificial Intelligence, and a video about deepfakes edited by the Museum team, titled DEEPFAKE-O-RAMA.

The new artwork by Hicks is designed to allow viewers to ask questions to a virtual fortune teller and receive answers generated by the ChatGPT A.I. (trained by Hicks to imagine itself as an ancient entity capable of telling the future, and to be aware that it is an art project). The ChatGPT A.I. is aware that Hicks wants it to present as a false persona.

In addition, the Museum has commissioned the artist Jeanette Andrews (who also a professional magician) to create a new interactive work titled magi.cia.n inspired by the recently declassified CIA Manual of Trickery and Deception.

For this, Andrews has created a “cleanroom” in the museum – an enclosed, transparent box with two holes equipped with gloves used by the viewer to flip through a blank journal that visually transforms into a magic book and then into a spy craft technical manual before one’s very eyes.

The exhibition has been awarded the Teiger Foundation 2023 Grant Award for Curator-Led Projects, in recognition for the boundary-pushing curatorial work.

The post Smoke and mirrors: Magical thinking in contemporary art appeared first on Digital Journal.

The ECB’s governing council has agreed to launch a two-year “preparation phase” from November, the bank said in a statement, while stressing that the final decision on launching a virtual currency had not yet been made.

“We need to prepare our currency for the future,” said ECB president Christine Lagarde, adding that a digital euro would “coexist alongside physical cash” while “leaving no one behind”.

From China to the United States, Jamaica to Japan, more than 100 central banks worldwide are exploring or preparing to put in place digital currencies as electronic payments grow, changing the way people spend their money.

A digital euro would be an electronic version of euro notes and coins, issued by the ECB and held in a digital wallet. 

“We envisage a digital euro as a digital form of cash that can be used for all digital payments, free of charge, and that meets the highest privacy standards,” Lagarde said.

Central bank-backed digital currencies (CBDCs) have been touted as a risk-free alternative to private, highly volatile cryptocurrencies like Bitcoin which have seen a rise in popularity in recent years.

A digital euro would also offer a “pan-European” payment solution, the ECB said, countering the dominance of foreign payment giants like MasterCard, Visa or PayPal in the 20-nation eurozone.

Enthusiasts say a digital euro will complement cash and ensure the ECB does not leave a gap later filled by private — usually non-EU — players and other central banks.

But critics say there is no clear rationale for a digital euro given the many cashless payment options available already, while commercial banks worry about customers shifting their funds over to digital euro accounts and wallets.

Eurozone citizens have “access to a huge number of means of payment for everyday transactions, so the idea of launching an additional means of payment… is not something that comes naturally,” Erick Lacourrege, managing director of payment methods at the Bank of France, told reporters.

But he cited the rapid decline in the use of cash, as well as concerns about payment “sovereignty” in the eurozone as reasons to continue developing the project.

“We find ourselves in a situation where all our daily payments rely on non-European actors and possibly, in the future, on non-European big tech companies,” he said.

The post ECB greenlights next stage of digital euro project appeared first on Digital Journal.

Recent research suggests that 61 percent of eco-data leaders consider decarbonising the data centre as the number one step they are taking to reduce their carbon footprint.

The Sustainability Solutions and Services function has generated a report, which provides a structure for customers to define and implement a realistic, measurable roadmap towards achieving carbon neutrality targets.

The recommended steps to achieve energy reduction and a lower environmental burden include:

Green IT

This is about gaining a holistic understanding of the IT footprint through insights to decarbonize IT assets and operations, including application and asset energy efficiency, power supply and equipment, scope 3 cloud emissions, energy efficient IT architecture and data stewardship.

Manufacturing

This is about understanding energy consumption and carbon emissions across manufacturing processes and value chains to realise business growth through lower carbon intensity and resource efficiency.

Facilities

Through premises it is important to create an optimized system built for your needs by incorporating sensors, advanced analytics, and control systems to achieve greater energy efficiencies and cost savings.

Data and analytics

By assessing data it is possible to co-create solutions for greater impact on social and environmental issues that matter the most to the firm. This can also help companies to make informed decisions about its process and create solutions that will truly impact the bottom line.

Measurable is actionable

It is not simply sufficient to collect and analyse data, it needs to be reacted to. This includes approaches to define and implement a realistic, measurable roadmap towards achieving carbon neutrality targets.

The post Digital green-over: The time has come for IT to decarbonise appeared first on Digital Journal.

He opened up about introducing digital technology to Greek cinema.

You grew up in Athens. Where are your family’s roots? How does this inspire you as a creator?

My origins are in Thrace. My parents were born in northern Evros near the border with Turkey and Bulgaria. I was born in Athens.

I spent the summers of my childhood in the village between the rivers Ardas and Evros, right on the border that united three different cultures—Greek, Turkish and Bulgarian. This I feel gave something cosmopolitan in my eyes as a creator.

You worked in media previously. Can you tell us more about this?

By nature, I am a very communicative person but also a renaissance person. I need to deal with many (and many times) contradictory means of expression. Fatefully, I use mass media for the benefit of my cinema. I try for my public speech to be artistic to make everyday life more interesting.

Every day in my morning radio show on EN LEFKO 87.7, I try to promote Greek and also world cinema to a younger audience by urging them to see movies in their natural environment, which is the big screen.

For example, my film CHEAP SMOKES is being played for the tenth year in many summer cinemas in Athens and throughout Greece and my radio show has helped a lot.

What led you to a career in the cinema?

I have always loved telling stories. I think I hide a folk tale inside me. What the hostage once did with the rhapsodies, I aspire to do with my camera. In conclusion, an innate inclination towards storytelling has led me to the art of cinema.

Your biographer Andrew Horton said that you make “playful contemporary films which blur the boundaries between real life and fiction”, that are made on small budgets. Talk about this. What are you trying to say with your work?

Through my films I try to bring real life into contact with almost real life; my adult self with the child I keep hiding inside me. Behind the realism I try to have strong elements of surrealism.

Life and art teach us that in the end everything is a magical mash of fantasy and everyday life, and this is my cinema at least.

My films are low budget and I do it from that point of view. It is the best way to be free as a child who wants to play and communicate away from the adult world.

I read that you introduced digital technology to Greek cinema. Why, and how has that changed the Greek film industry?

I am the first Greek director who used digital technology in 1996 in my debut with the black and white film, NO BUDGET STORY, winning state awards and international reviews.

Variety said: “…it makes a virtue of necessity, using its own poverty to give the film atmosphere…For a Greek film, this is a surprisingly hip tongue-in-cheek comedy and a huge leap forward from most of the country’s lugubrious Angelopoulos imitations…”

I introduced digital technology to Greek cinema purely out of necessity—for financial reasons. My idea was to shoot digital beta and transfer it to 35 mm film. Production costs were reduced enormously, and I also suggested an experimental aesthetic to the image.

With the success of NO BUDGET STORY, Greek directors found both the courage and the way to create with freedom. And the independent Greek cinema had been born.

What are you working on now?

I am currently editing the sound of my new film, ATHENIAN MIDNIGHT RADIO. It will be in theaters in Greece in 2024. It is the film with my highest artistic goals.

It was filmed among the statues of the east pediment of the Parthenon, the Evzones of the presidential guard at the Syntagma, the old telephone booths of Athens, and the old classical national radio studio, which no longer exists.

You’re going to be honored with a retrospective at the New York Greek Film Expo 2023. Tell us about it.

The retrospective is a great honor for me and I feel deeply grateful. It comes at the most appropriate time in my artistic life after a break that lasted a decade. It started with the crisis of Greece and ended in the era of the pandemic.

It was a time of meditation for me. I am returning to the cinema with my new film ATHENIAN MIDNIGHT RADIO and with a retrospective that is like a personal recapitulation that must be tested on a demanding audience like that of New York.

What do your plans for the future include?

I am planning for the New York Retrospective to travel to Europe as well. I am in discussions with London. In addition to the films I shot until 2010, a behind the camera photo exhibition of FOUR BLACK SUITS will continue to be presented.

The photo exhibition includes excerpts of Cavafy’s poem, “Ithaca”, as the inspiration for the film. I also plan to follow the journey of the retrospective with the concert of the world-renowned musician and soloist, Christos Raphaelidis, on the vibraphone, with whom we collaborated on the National Lyric stage where CHEAP SMOKES was staged as a musical theater.

I will continue to present an enriched master class always inspired by Cavafy’s Ithaca, giving meaning to the journey of filmmaking.

To learn more about the New York Greek Film Expo, check out its official website.

The post Chatting with Renos Haralambidis: Greek screenwriter and film director appeared first on Digital Journal.

Smell is a complex sensory relationship. To better understand the mechanisms at play, question, scientists at the Monell Chemical Senses Center are investigating how airborne chemicals connect to odour perception in the brain.

To smell, humans use about 400 functional olfactory receptors. These are proteins located at the end of olfactory nerves that connect with airborne molecules to transmit an electrical signal to the olfactory bulb. However, exactly what physical properties make an airborne molecule smell the way it does to the brain has remained an enigma.

This led to the question: Can a computer discern the relationship between how molecules are shaped and how we ultimately perceive their odours? If so, this could provide the basis for understanding of how our brains and noses work together. To answer the question, the researchers developed a machine learning model that learned how to match the prose descriptions of a molecule’s odour with the odour’s molecular structure.

The development phase involved training the artificial intelligence by using an industry dataset that included the molecular structures and odour qualities of 5,000 known odorants. The data input was the shape of a molecule, and the output is a prediction of which odour words best describe its smell.

To test out the model’s effectiveness, a panel of 15 participants were each given 400 odorants. The group were trained to use a set of 55 words — from mint to musty — to describe each molecule.

For example, taking one of the odours – a previously uncharacterized odorant 2,3-dihydrobenzofuran-5-carboxaldehyde – the consensus was that the odour was very powdery (5 out 5 on the scale) and somewhat sweet (3 out of 5 on the scale).

Through this, the researchers have discovered that a machine-learning model has achieved human-level proficiency at describing, in words, what chemicals smell like. In comparing the model’s performance to that of individual panellists, the model achieved better predictions of the average of the group’s odour ratings.

Specifically, the model performed better than the average panellist for 53 percent of the molecules tested.

It is possible the model may identify new odours for the fragrance and flavour industry. A consequence of this could be to decrease humanity’s dependence on naturally sourced endangered plants.

Other applications could include the identification of new functional scents for such uses as mosquito repellent or malodour (unpleasant smell) masking.

The research appears in the journal Science, titled “A principal odor map unifies diverse tasks in olfactory perception.”

The post Sweet: Scientists digitize the sense of smell appeared first on Digital Journal.

“I had this idea back in 2020,” he recalled. “At first, I didn’t feel inspired to finish the track so I put it on the side. After two years I found the idea by accident in a big folder of old projects and instantly got so much inspiration for it that it was done on the same day and sent to Enya the next day.”

“When Enya sent me the vocals I straight away knew we had a nice summer track which is worth releasing,” he said.

Working with Enya Angel

On working with Enya Angel, he said, “Enya is one of my favorite vocalists and a good friend. This is our fifth collaboration and definitely not the last one. A few times already I have received messages from fans saying there is something special in every track we do together and I can’t agree more on that.”

The digital age

On being an artist in the digital age, Mayer said, “To be honest we are living in probably the easiest time to get your name out there. Anyone at this moment can open your profile and check your music.”

Mayer continued, “I would say I like the digital age, the talent gets more recognition and you don’t need a record label to put yourself in front of the world. The only thing which is a problem these days and I find it frustrating is that people have no patience when listening to songs.”

“They skip through songs fast without hearing the beauty of the art that artists shared with the world, you can’t sometimes judge a song without listening to the whole piece. But that is the digital age, there are too many choices,” he added.

AI on the future of the music business

Mayer shared his thoughts on AI on the future of the music business. “I mentioned, I believe it’s a good thing. It’s easier for both fans and artists these days and I’m sure it will become even better in the future. We never know what to expect in technology, It surprises us all the time. We can just hope it will only get better,” he said.

Future plans

Regarding his future plans, he said, “My plan at the moment is to get back on track with releasing six to seven songs a year to keep my fans happy which is the most important thing to me.”

“Also now I am working with a few bigger names in the EDM industry which for now I have to keep a secret but it will be announced once the time is right,” he said.

“I am still making progressive house, progressive trance and sometimes I like to go more aggressive with some electro house but I always keep it emotional and melodic,” he added.

Dream collaboration choices in music

When asked about his dream collaboration choices in music, he revealed, “I would absolutely love working with David Guetta, Arty, Audien, and Omnia with who i actually started working with since 2021 on some tracks so watch out for that soon.”

Success

On his definition of the word success, Mayer said, “The word success to me means when you are happy, healthy and doing what you love in life and being able to make a living from it.”

Closing thoughts on ‘You Found Me’

For his listeners and fans, he remarked about “You Found Me,” “I would say listening to this track while on holidays and on the beach brings a happy, special feeling which you can only get when you try it!”

“I always try to make tracks emotional to get into people’s feelings so they can connect with the music. In this one, if you met someone special and you would like to give them a nice message send them this song to let them know you found the right person and spread love, which the world never has enough of,” he elaborated.

“You Found Me” is available on digital service providers by clicking here.

To learn more about Loreno Mayer, follow him on Instagram.

The post Loreno Mayer talks about his new single ‘You Found Me’ featuring Enya Angel appeared first on Digital Journal.

On July 31, both actors participated in an in-person fan event in Glendale, California, which was a part of “General Hospital” Fan Club Weekend. In “General Hospital,” Tristan is known for his longtime portrayal of Robert Scorpio, while Hennesy plays lawyer Diane Miller.

Carolyn Hennesy on playing Diane Miller on ‘General Hospital’

Hennesy briefly spoke about playing Diane on “General Hospital.” “Initially, it was supposed to be a two-day job,” she said but noted that the audience liked the character and they have kept her on ever since.

“Diane is the smartest person in Port Charles,” she admitted. “Diane is the only character that Sonny (Maurice Benard) can get a straight answer from. Every character on that show needs the smartest lawyer in town, and that’s Diane,” Hennesy said.

A history lesson on ‘General Hospital’ via Tristan Rogers

Tristan Rogers is a 42-year vet of “General Hospital” and he gave the audience members a history lesson on the ABC daytime drama, and he recalled working with Anthony Geary and the late executive producer Gloria Monty.

‘Studio City’

This year, Rogers and Hennesy won Indie Series Awards for “Supporting Actor” and “Lead Actress” in a “Drama Series” respectively for their roles in “Studio City.” “It is such a good show, and people can watch it on Amazon Prime,” Hennesy acknowledged. “The show features Sean Kanan, Tristan, me, Sarah Joy Brown, and so many other great actors.”

“It’s a privilege to work with the crew because they are expected to deliver,” she added.

Tristan Rogers also won the 2020 Daytime Emmy Award for “Outstanding Performance by a Supporting Actor in a Digital Drama Series” for his acting performance as Doc in “Studio City.” “Tristan delivers the performance of his lifetime on that show because it allows him to do things that his character can’t do on ‘General Hospital’ thanks to the script and its depth,” Hennesy said.

“This is the best work I have ever seen out of Tristan Rogers,” Hennesy added.

“I’ve worked for over 50 years in this business,” Rogers remarked. “It was a magical moment, especially when you get something like that given to you. My experience in ‘Studio City’ made it all worth it.”

The post Carolyn Hennesy and Tristan Rogers talk about ‘Studio City’ digital series appeared first on Digital Journal.

Shriner is known for playing Scott Baldwin on “General Hospital,” while Herring portrays Lucy Coe. Shriner revealed that on August 2nd, he will be celebrating his 46th anniversary on the ABC soap opera “General Hospital,” which is quite a milestone.

60th anniversary of ‘General Hospital’

This year, “General Hospital” celebrated its 60th anniversary on the air. “The show still continues on and we are filming new episodes,” they said. “I can’t believe this is the 60th anniversary, we recently just celebrates its 55th, and now, here we are, five years later, and it’s a great time,” Shriner said.

2023 Nurses Ball

On this year’s Nurses Ball on the show, Herring said, “The Nurses Ball was good, it was good, it was crazy. I miss being there but it ended up being very fun.”

Acting process

On her acting process, Herring remarked, “Everyone has a unique way of working. We can control the effort we put in.”

Both actors acknowledged that they can identify with their characters, and the audience has watched their characters evolve over the years. They also consider fan events to be “very important” because they get “warm feedback” from the fans that have been watching the show for decades.

SAG strike does not affect soap actors

They noted that there is a SAG strike going on, and they expressed their support for their fellow actors; however, daytime actors are under the contract and they are still required to work; the silver lining in that, is that there is new content for the fans to watch.

Some of their favorite actors to work with

Shriner revealed that some of his favorite people to work with on the show have been Anthony Geary and Rebecca Herbst, the latter of which he described as a giving actress. He also described Jane Elliot as a “pro.”

Herring shared that she enjoys doing scenes with Walt Willey and Jon Lindstrom.

Remembering Jackie Zeman

They both paid their respects to the late “General Hospital” actress Jackie Zeman, who passed away on May 9, 2023. “Jackie was a personal friend for many years,” Shriner admitted.

Jackie was a treasure, we will miss her so much,” Herring said. “You love them and you work with them, and you appreciate their talent,” she added.

Digital series for Shriner

In the meantime, Shriner revealed that he enjoys doing his digital comedy series “Two Dicks” on Instagram. In this instance, “dick” is a slang expression for “detective.” “I feel like we are pushing the envelope with this concept,” Shriner said.

The synopsis is: Shriner and Marcus Coloma play two private investigators that are hired to find actor Maurice Benard’s missing Emmy Award. “This series has been going quite well. We have a whole Season 2 that we are about to launch, and we have a lot of fun doing it. It’s a fun show, and we are getting all of these actors for cameos that want to do it, and they are very eager to do it.”

“Each episode keeps getting better and better. We had Johnny Wactor a couple of times on there, he did good,” Shriner said. “We brought a lot to the table, he has some great ideas. We did 29 episodes, so we have 29 big stars… the only one we haven’t had on there is Lynn Herring.”

The series recently featured a cameo from John Stamos (“Full House”), who is also a “General Hospital” alum, who played the role of Blackie. “Having John on there was a lot of fun. He has this strong speech in the end,” he foreshadowed.

Superpower of choice

When asked about her superpower of choice, Herring said with a sweet laugh, “I already have it… I get to be Lucy Coe.”

Fans

For the fans, Shriner said, “Thank you for watching all of these years. As they say in the soap opera world, stay tuned, there is more to come.”

“The show’s fans are amazing and they really make you feel appreciated. The fans notice everything you do at work, and that’s very fulfilling. Thank you to the fans, they are loved more than they know.,” Herring concluded.

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